Before the war, he was a pro-slavery senator and he supported Breckinridge in the presidential campaign of 1860.
He returned to Georgia soon after the election of Lincoln and led the fight for secession there, with the ambitions for becoming the president of the new Confederate nation.
Toombs was intelligent, a good debater, popular and respected by all factions throughout the South, but on February 9, 1861, the constitutional convention at Montgomery named Davis as president of the CSA.
Which leads to an interesting what-if: what if Toombs, rather than Davis, had been elected president of the CSA?
a) no civil war, since the CS government would have had as its first priority "don't fire the first shot!" (later, Toombs was indeed the only opponent in the Cabinet to the bombardment of Ft Sumter).
b) the war started under another pretext (example : Leonidas Polk would station troops in Kentucky without bothering to clear his decision first with the CS government), but 6 months later. This delay could have a significant effect on the South preparation for war (exchange of cotton for much more war materials).
Could this lead to an interesting variant ?

Cheers